


You like a boy? That's pretty gay dude

by Codykolokeysmash



Category: Tiny Meat Gang (Band)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Food Service, Arguing, Bisexual Male Character, Conflict Resolution, First Meetings, Gay Male Character, Help, How Do I Tag, M/M, Swearing, YouTube, juuling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-07-28 13:47:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20065024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Codykolokeysmash/pseuds/Codykolokeysmash
Summary: Cody Ko is his typical moody raccoon self when he's hungry and he goes to McDonald's to eat. Noel is the cashier and doesn't put up with Cody being an ass. They bicker a bit and they're pretty flustered by one another because as it turns out, neither of them are straight. Their argument rapidly turns into awkward flirtation.This is the first time they meet one another and I definitely plan on writing more as long as I have the time for it and you all don't hate it lmao. I hope it's good!





	1. Feral Hungry or Feral Horny?

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to a friend of mine (you know how you are and I'll give you specific credit if you'd like) for giving me advice and for proof-reading this. You are immensely appreciated!

Cody was hungry. It was nearly eleven in the morning and he hadn’t eaten. He had spent the majority of the morning editing videos and was so focused on what he was doing that eating breakfast hadn’t occurred to him. Now that Cody could feel the pangs of hunger in his stomach, there was little else he could think about. He briefly considered having something delivered, but decided against that because he knew that would take too long; he needed something now.   
Cody walked outside into a warm, breezy Venice morning, making sure to lock his door behind him. Birds were chirping and you could hear the sounds of the LA traffic coming from about a block away. But Cody didn’t notice any of that. He had turned into one of the massive grizzly bears he remembered from childhood trips to the BC wilderness; focused on absolutely nothing but his next meal. Cody briskly walked to the McDonald’s a couple of blocks away from his place. It wasn’t long before he was opening the door and stepping into the cool, air conditioned restaurant.   
While he waited in line behind a middle aged couple, Cody looked over the menu to decide what he wanted. Truthfully he didn’t really care what he had as long as it satisfied his hunger, but the items on the breakfast menu looked good. He had decided on a sausage croissant sandwich, orange juice, and a hash brown on the side. When the people ahead of him finished their order and moved aside, Cody walked forward to place his own.   
The cashier smiled politely at Cody and listened as he began to place his order. When the cashier heard Cody ordering from the breakfast menu he glanced at the clock to see that it was 11:15, so they had stopped serving breakfast fifteen minutes ago. When Cody had finished speaking, the cashier apologized and told him that they had stopped serving breakfast and that he would need to order something else.   
“This is ridiculous,” Cody insisted. “It’s only a little after 11:00, you must still have the breakfast items in the kitchen.”   
“I’m sorry sir, it’s company policy and it’s out of my hands. Is there anything else I can get for you?” The cashier smiled once again, trying to maintain the appearance of cool politeness, but his long fingers tapping quietly on the cash register gave away his agitation.   
Cody rolled his eyes. He wasn’t sure why he was so annoyed, but there was something about this cashier that really left him flustered. Maybe it was his level, deep voice or the way his hands looked resting on the counter. His fingers were long and tapered, perfecting accenting his strong hands with slightly prominent veins. The man’s eyes were bright and his short black hair was meticulously styled. Something about him seemed warm, sensual even. He was somewhat scrawny and a little shorter than Cody, but despite his small stature, his presence was commanding in an offhand way. Cody got the impression that this man, his name tag said Noel, was sure of himself and confident in his identity. Though he denied it even to himself, Cody liked what he saw.   
However, Cody was still annoyed and so very, very hungry. He just wanted a fucking breakfast sandwich, and this smug cashier wouldn’t let him have it. “Fine then,” Cody huffed, “I’ll just get two cheeseburgers and a medium drink since you obviously don’t give a shit about satisfying your customers.” Cody almost felt bad about being so shitty to the man, but he didn’t let anything or anyone come between him and his food no matter how attractive they were.   
At this point, Noel had just about had it. He was so tired of being pushed around by these privileged white LA guys that demanded everyone around them to cater to their every whim. Why would he bend the rules for some dime-a-dozen white bread-ass former frat boy type anyway? As he stood there looking at this particular customer, his frustration bubbled over and he let it out before he could think to stop himself.   
“See, this is the reason all you straight men are fucking trash. You think that you can treat others however you want and get away with it. I’m so damn sick of this bullshit.” Once Noel realized what he said and that he may have just gotten himself fired, he looked around to see if anyone had noticed the exchange. Fortunately no one seemed to have been paying attention.   
Cody was somewhat bewildered, and simultaneously insulted, by what the cashier had said. “Wrong again,” he said indignantly, “I like dick too!” Now it was Noel’s turn to be surprised. He had no idea what to do but apologize, finish the transaction, and hope that the customer didn’t rat him out to his manager. The guy sat down at a table near the window while he waited for his order to be completed. Noel helped the next people in line but he couldn’t help but steal a few glances at the man with messy brown hair with a slight blonde hint in the tips. Now that he had a minute to calm down, coupled with the realization that this man was not straight, Noel couldn’t help but notice how handsome he was. Sure, he had a bit of the bland-but-conventionally-handsome look, but there was a slight softness in his tired eyes and somewhat of a mischievous smirk permanently etched in the corners of his mouth. Noel suddenly found himself imagining what it would be like to run his hands through the guy’s shaggy hair and how he might close his eyes and sigh in contentment while he did that. Noel shook his head to clear his thoughts and returned his focus onto the customer currently standing at the register.   
A few minutes later, Cody’s food was ready and he scarfed it down as quickly as he could. Social etiquette was far from his mind until his meal was finished and he finally thought to wipe his mouth with his napkin. As he threw away the burger wrappers and empty paper cup, he looked back at the counter to see if he could catch one last glimpse at Noel before he left. Unfortunately the handsome cashier was nowhere to be seen and Cody left the restaurant with his eyes cast down in disappointment.   
Noel was just going back inside after his break when he nearly ran into someone leaving the building. It took him a moment for him to recognize that the person leaving was the attractive man that berated him for not letting him order from the breakfast menu. They both blushed and Cody stammered out an apology for nearly running into Noel.   
“It’s all good,” Noel said. “No problem. And hey, I’m really sorry about earlier. I just get so frustrated with people sometimes, I won’t let that happen again with you or anyone else.” Cody nodded in appreciation.   
“It’s fine man, honestly I was being kinda shitty to you and I’m sorry about that,” Cody responded. “No one should treat you like that.” Noel smiled at Cody’s words. He wasn’t sure how to respond but it was nice to know that this guy wasn’t so awful after all and that his job was probably safe for now.   
Cody wasn’t sure what to say next either, so he settled for awkwardly introducing himself. They shook hands and stood there waiting for the other person to speak up. After a few moments, Noel was finally the one to break the silence.   
“For what it’s worth, I think it’s cool that you’re gay and you’re okay with owning it even with strangers like me. I am too but I don’t share it with anyone unless I know they’d be 100% cool with it.” Noel felt a little weird about what he was saying, but he wanted Cody to know just in case he somehow might have a shot with him. The redness in Cody’s cheeks had increased with every word Noel spoke and he was finding it harder and harder to maintain eye contact.   
“I’m actually bi, but yeah...thanks,” Cody answered while shuffling his feet and looking at the ground. “It took me awhile to come to terms with it, I hope that it’s something you get more comfortable with someday.”   
Noel hated to cut the conversation short, but he really needed to get back to work. “Hey, it was good to meet you and talk for a bit but I gotta get back inside before my manager gets on my ass.” Noel exhaled audibly before continuing, “Would you like my phone number though? It would be great to chat again sometime.” Cody nodded and smiled, handing Noel his phone so he could add himself to Cody’s contacts. They exchanged goodbyes before Noel went back to work and Cody walked home. The Venice day seemed just a bit brighter than it had before in Cody’s mind, and there was a pleasant warmth in his chest he hadn’t felt in quite some time. He couldn’t wait to talk to Noel again.


	2. Stand Up, Stand Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one's mostly about feelings and developing the characters a bit, or at least I hope so lol. The plot will move along much more in the next one. Thank you for reading my stuff, uwus for all of you!

It had been three days since Cody met Noel and had gotten his phone number. He still hadn’t texted him. Not because he didn’t want to talk to him, but because he was 

nervous. What would he even say? He didn’t want to send something bland nor did he want to come on too strong, but if he waited too long, he’d miss his chance. 

Cody’s thoughts were interrupted by a vape cloud being blown directly in his face. He grimaced and pulled his face back while attempting to wave the cloud away with his hand. 

A low, throaty chuckle filled the room as Cody began to speak. 

“Sam, what the fuck dude?” Cody whined indignantly. “Was that really necessary?” Sam’s laugh only increased in volume and was joined by Devon’s lighthearted giggle. 

“I don’t know man, we were talking and you were just spacing off while Marcus was asking you a direct question.” Sam explained with a cheerful but cocky half smile. “I figured 

that’d get your attention if nothing else would,” he finished before taking a sip of his beer. Cody rolled his eyes before directing his focus toward Marcus. 

“Sorry about that, what were you saying?” Cody asked. 

“I was just asking what you guys wanted to do tonight. We could just stay here and drink or maybe we could all go out and do something if you wanted. Not clubbing though, 

we all remember what happened last time we tried that.” Marcus responded while giving Sam a passive aggressive look. Sam shifted uncomfortably in his seat while avoiding 

eye contact with anyone. 

They all knew the story behind what Marcus has said, even if he hadn’t spelled it out explicitly. The last time they all went to a club together, Sam had gotten absolutely trashed 

and they ended up having to leave the women they had been talking to and dancing with all night because Sam was sitting at the bar sobbing while mumbling incomprehensible 

gibberish. Nothing was wrong, tequila just made him a whiny little bitch. Sam followed that up by puking in the Uber they had shared going back to Cody’s apartment. Sam 

slept in the bathtub that night because he wasn’t trusted anywhere with bedding or carpeted floors. 

Cody put that memory aside and thought about what Marcus has asked. Maybe getting out of the house would be good so he could stop thinking about what to text Noel. 

Something low key and mindless sounded nice. As he mulled it over, he came up with a couple of options. 

“We could go to a movie, or it’s comedy night at the bar down the road, we could go heckle the middle aged men dissing on their wives or something,” Cody suggested. Devon 

and Marcus both smiled a bit at the last part of Cody’s words. 

“I don’t know about heckling,” Devon began, “But I could go for some embarrassingly bad jokes right now, why not?” They all agreed and finished their drinks before walking 

down to the bar. They didn’t agree because they particularly wanted to go watch open mic comedy; they just couldn’t think of anything better to do on a Tuesday night. 

It didn’t take too long for the four men to arrive at the bar. They settled down in their seats without paying attention to the person at the mic performing their routine. They 

each ordered a beer and talked for a few minutes before their drinks were brought to the table. Around the same time, a few people began applauding politely as the person on 

stage finished their jokes and stepped off the stage. A lean, olive skinned man was now taking the stage and Cody nearly spat out his drink onto Devon, who was sitting across 

from him, when he recognized the man. His thoughts were wiped clean of everything except the man’s name. 

_ Noel.  _

His stomach began to churn in nervousness. He tried to keep his face composed so he wouldn’t give away anything to the guys. Cody slouched back into his seat as Noel began 

to speak into the mic. While Noel went through his routine, Cody noticed that the audience wasn’t paying much attention to the handsome comedian on stage. Their attention 

was on their brightly lit phone screens or they were focused on conversations with the people they were sitting with. The low murmur of voices and clinking of glasses made it 

difficult for anyone to give Noel their undivided attention. Cody’s nervous energy had turned into fidgeting as he distractedly picked at the corner of the label on his beer bottle. 

Cody wished people would quiet down and put their phones down to give their attention to Noel. The jokes were really good and his timing and delivery were decent, but it 

seemed that he just couldn’t get the audience to connect with him. Cody knew that could be tough, especially with a live audience. He had enough issues with that with just his 

youtube channel, which was way easier than connecting with people face to face. 

While Cody’s mind wandered, Noel was unaware of his presence. Noel’s stomach began to feel heavy with disappointment and defeat as he surveyed the crowd. He had been 

coming to this open mic comedy night every fucking week for months, and it was always the same result...absolutely nothing from an unengaged crowd. If you could even call 

around 10 or so people with nothing better to do a crowd. The stage might as well have been empty for all they cared. He recognized most of the audience from previous 

weeks. Other than a group of men sitting in the corner, he was pretty sure he had seen everyone here before. As he looked more closely at the table of four men, he realized he 

did recognize one of them, and he stumbled through the rest of his joke as he made eye contact with the messy haired, tired eyed man that he had met a few days before. Noel 

tore his gaze away from Cody’s and hastily finished the rest of his set before walking off the stage. He kept his with his eyes down, hardly able to think of anything other than 

seeing Cody’s handsome face among the crowd. His emotions were all over the place. There was the rush from seeing Cody, as well as the usual frustration from wasting his 

time doing stand up here and the embarrassment from flopping week after week. 

As Noel left the stage, Cody’s eyes followed him as he took a seat at the bar. Luckily Cody was nearly finished with his beer, so he had an excuse to chug the last of it and get 

up to get another one. Noel hadn’t ordered anything yet, he just sat there slumped over with his head in his hands. He looked even smaller than normal sitting there hunched 

over looking defeated. Cody couldn’t help but feel a bit sad and concerned for him. 

Cody made eye contact with the bartender and gave her a brief, polite smile. “Can I get two bottles of beer please?” he asked. She nodded and put two on the counter, and then 

took the money he held in his outstretched hand. “Keep the change,” he said without looking at her. His eyes were focused on Noel. He sat down in the seat next to him and put 

one of the bottles next to Noel’s elbow. Noel heard the sound and looked over to see Cody seated next to him. He managed a small smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. 

“Hey man,” Cody began, “That’s for you, I figured you could use a drink,” he finished, motioning to the beer. 

“What, you saw me here all sad and vulnerable and thought you could get me drunk and take me home or something? You tryna take advantage of me dog?” Noel said with a 

mischievous smile. The lighthearted humorous glint flashed in Noel’s eyes as Cody blushed and chuckled lightly at Noel’s reply. The light in his eyes faded quickly though as 

Noel took a long drink of the beer. “Seriously though, thanks dude, I appreciate it.” Noel said in a low voice as he played with the neck of the bottle. Cody smiled in response. He 

wasn’t sure what to say next. He knew that Noel’s spirits were low and he wished that he could magically make him feel better somehow. 

They sat in silence drinking for a little while. Cody eventually was the one to speak up. “You know, I’d invite you to come sit with my friends and I, but I get the feeling that you 

aren’t in the mood for meeting new people right now. I know I’m definitely not when I’m feeling down.” 

Noel shook his head. “Nah, I’ll pass, but thanks though, maybe next time.” 

“Next time?” Cody questioned. Noel smiled. 

“Yeah fool, next time. I’m not giving up on this stand up shit anytime soon, and I’m hoping your ass will be here next week to come watch me.” The mischievous glint in Noel’s 

eyes was back again and it seemed to be staying. Cody was a bit flustered but happily agreed to come see Noel perform the following week. 

“How about dinner sometime later this week too though?” Cody asked. “It’d be cool to see you sometime before then.” Noel agreed and they made plans to meet up at a 

restaurant that Saturday for lunch. 

“Feel free to text me sometime though,” Noel said with a wink. “I gave you my number for a reason” Cody smiled sheepishly and nodded. He felt the butterflies in his stomach 

going wild. He wondered when the last time, if ever, anyone had ever made him the kind of nervous excitement Noel inspired within him. He hoped to god he wouldn’t fuck this 

thing up. 


End file.
